Minor Prophets - Book Review
Hurley, Blair. Minor Prophets. Ig Publishing. 2023
Paperback, 286 pp. $17.95
Blair Hurley’s work centers the darker aspects of religion and spirituality. Her 2023 book, Minor Prophets will leave you questioning your own perceptions. Nora, a former member of a midwestern religious cult, is forced to reflect on her upbringing when she receives a cryptic letter in the mail. We see flashes of her current life backlit by recollections of the past. As Nora attempts to piece together what happened to the cult since she left, readers piece together the fragmented memories of the past—her family, her upbringing, and her role as a cult-leader’s daughter.
Hurley’s psychological exploration of cultism, abuse, and trauma creates a narrative that feels so realistic it is almost tangible. Nora grapples with cognitive dissonance, a war that seeps from her childhood into her adulthood. “The worship is still there, hovering around the edges of their stories,” she says, observing others with similar backgrounds to herself (27). Then, she writes, “Sounds like you miss it. I know I do.” There is the logic of what she knows is true and the desire for the familiarity of a youth those in the “real” world cannot understand, a siren song that pulls her to return even though she knows it will only bring torment.
We are not free of the allure, either. Hurley makes us doubt our own understanding of the world she creates. There were times when I wondered if the story would take a turn and reveal a coming apocalypse and whether Nora was truly a prophet sent by God. We are reminded that anyone, hearing the right words at the right time, can easily be swept up in a doctrine many would deem impossible to believe. Everyone wants to be important, and everyone is afraid, a fact Nora’s father uses against his congregation and his own children, for better or for worse.
Minor Prophets is made for readers who want a mystery to pick apart as well as those with a willingness to face the uncomfortable aspects of human nature and its darker inclinations. Hurley crafts tension and intrigue by using what the audience doesn’t know against them. You will be anxious. You may have to put down the book and take a walk, but you will always follow the siren song back because it is impossible to ignore, even if you want to.
